I Won't Let You Easily
by LectersLambs
Summary: AU, Hannibal Lecter was never detained and is still a free man, Jack Crawford sends Clarice Starling to visit the psychiatrist Hannibal Lecter in hopes he will aide the FBI in finding Buffalo Bill. As they work together, an unlikely friendship blossoms and as time goes on, could that friendship blossom into something more? Rubbish summary but just roll with it
1. Chapter 1

**Don't fret Bad Blood readers, I'm working on this story as well as Bad Blood!**

**AU, Hannibal Lecter was never detained and is still a free man, Jack Crawford sends Clarice Starling to visit the psychiatrist Hannibal Lecter in hopes he will aide the FBI in finding Buffalo Bill. As they work together, an unlikely friendship blossoms and as time goes on, could that friendship blossom into something more? Shitty summary but just roll with it!**

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Chapter 1

When Clarice Starling first met Dr. Hannibal Lecter to say she was nervous was a laughable understatement. Dr. Lecter was a somewhat celebrity amongst her and her fellow psychology graduates at Quantico, renowned for his intelligence and his reluctance to aide the FBI in unsolved cases. When he did aide the FBI, however, he was magnificent, with most of the cases that had been regarded as unsolvable were solved in a matter of days. But this was only a once in a blue moon occasion. The one FBI agent that was seen as at least an acquaintance to Dr. Lecter was Will Graham who Dr. Lecter had assisted on not one but three cases; the case of the Minnesota Shrike, the Tooth Fairy and the Chesapeake Ripper. However, Graham had retired years before Clarice had even graduated college.

So when Clarice was called in Jack Crawford's office, she was surprised to learn that the 'errand' she was to fulfil was to visit the reclusive Dr. Lecter. The BSU had been having a significant amount of trouble with a serial killer that went by the name of 'Buffalo Bill' and believed that Hannibal Lecter was the man that could find him. Clarice could see the doubt in Jack Crawford's eyes as he gave her the task. She wasn't surprised, most agents, many older than herself, that had been sent to Dr. Lecter didn't survive more than three minutes with him. What hope did Clarice have? Ever the ambitious one, Clarice visited Dr. Lecter at his home office in Baltimore.

When she arrived at his front door, he answered dressed in a sharp, grey fitted suit, his dark hair slicked back, the picture of sophistication and grace. Clarice had dawned, in her opinion, the smartest clothes she owned. He looked at her, a slight smile playing of his lips and his eyes shined as he took her in. "Good morning," he said politely, standing up straight. "How may I help you?"

"Doctor Lecter, my name is Clarice Starling, I'm from the FBI," she smiled politely at him.

At the mention of the FBI, Doctor Lecter raised his eyebrows in amused surprise, crossed his arms and leaned against the door frame. "You're one of Jack Crawford's aren't you?" he didn't allow her time to answer before he continued. "Yes Jack told me you would be coming by. May I see your credentials, please?"

"Yes of course," she reached into her coat pocket, fumbling slightly and handed him her temporary identification. He glanced over it quickly then met her eyes.

"This expires in one week, you're not real FBI are you?" he winked at her, Clarice remained polite.

"I'm still in training at the academy, Sir," she said as he handed her back her ID and she placed it back in her coat pocket.

He smirked. "Jack Crawford sent a trainee to me," he mocked offence. "Please, do come in," he stood to the side allowing her into his home. "May I take your jacket?" he asked when she'd stepped over the threshold.

Clarice stuttered slightly before she answered. In her life she hadn't come across that many gentlemen, and to be in presence of an apparent gentleman she was a bit taken by surprise. "Uhh, yes of course, please," she said as went to take off her jacket.

"Please, allow me," Doctor Lecter took a step towards her, his hands interrupting her own as he gently brushed over the hand she'd already brought to her shoulder to begin slipping off her coat. He slid off her coat with elegant ease and hung it up on the coat hanger next to the door.

"Now then, please, take a seat," he gestured to the two chairs that faced each other in the middle of the room. She sat down just before he sat down in the chair opposite her. She could see what he was doing, sitting her down in his patient's chair, doing everything he can to remind her he was in control of the situation. She had no doubt that in most situations, he was. "So what is it that Jackie Boy wants from me now, hmm? I can only assume it's about Buffalo Bill, what a naughty boy he has been."

"As a matter of fact yes. Mr. Crawford was wondering if you could give us insight into a psychological profile we're creating on-"

"Oh no, no, you were doing fine," he shook his head, smiling slightly. He leaned forward so that his elbows rested on his legs. His eyes met hers. She remained sitting formally, her back straight, her legs crossed over and her hands resting on her top knee. She simply stared at him as he ridiculed her. "You had been courteous and receptive to courtesy, and now this, jumping right in at the deep end are we, Agent Starling? It won't do."

She just stared at him, she wouldn't let him break her. "Either you help us or you don't, sir, the choice is yours."

He smirked at her and leaned back into his chair. "Tell me, Agent Starling, why do you think he removes their skins? Enthral me with your acumen."

"It excites him," Clarice shrugged nonchalantly. "Most serial killers like to keep some sort of trophy of their victims."

He chucked slightly. "You're so ambitious aren't you, Agent Starling? That's why you came here today is it not, that's why Jack Crawford picked you out of all your classmates, at least that's what you would like to think. But you know as well as I know the true reason he chose you. He likes you, Agent Starling, and not just because he thinks you're an exceptional student with an extraordinary mind, no, no, he likes you because he think you're _exceptional _outside of academics and the F-B-I. He knows fine that I won't assist him in the hunt for his Buffalo Bill so why involve you? A reason to interact with you perhaps? A teacher-student fantasy he has always dreamed of fulfilling?"

Clarice didn't flinch once at Doctor Lecter's words. Her face remained blank. "This isn't about me, or Jack Crawford, for that matter, Doctor Lecter, this is about Buffalo Bill. If you don't help us, that's just fine, more girl's will die but we will catch him. All in the meantime, you'll be sitting in that chair ridiculing others just to pass the time, distracting yourself from your uneventful and frankly, lonely life all because you're too damn proud to help anyone but yourself," Clarice had no idea what words had come out of her mouth but when she met Doctor Lecter's eyes she could see both irritation and anger looking right back at her. Realising the mistake she made she hastily go up from her chair. "I think I should leave now."

"Yes I think that'd be appropriate," he practically hissed at her.

She rushed over to the coat hanger, grabbed her coat and got the hell out of there.

When she returned back to the dorm she was in the middle of telling Ardelia how much on asshole the infamous Doctor Lecter was when the phone rang. "And _that _will be Jack Crawford calling to hound me for fucking everything up with Doctor Lecter."

Ardelia laughed slightly and rolled her eyes. "Starling," she answered the phone.

"Starling what the hell did you say to Doctor Lecter?!" Jack's voice was full of surprise and enquiry.

Clarice shook her head and pinched the bridge of her nose in frustration. "I know Mr. Crawford, I'm so sorry I don't know what came over me," Clarice tried to explain before Jack cut her off.

"Sorry? Why are you apologising, Starling? Doctor Lecter wants to see you again on Wednesday," Jack Crawford sounded ecstatic, a tone rarely heard from him.

Clarice was beyond confused. "What does that mean, Mr. Crawford?"

"It means he's agreed to help with the case, under one condition that is," Jack's enthusiasm decreased notably.

"And what is that, sir?" she enquired.

"That he speaks to you and only you about the case," Jack explained. Clarice didn't say anything. "Now listen, Clarice, you don't have to say or do anything you're not comfortable with, if you don't want any part in this it's understandable."

"If I don't more girls will die, sir," Clarice almost cut him off. "I'll do it."

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**Wasn't going to end it there but it seemed appropriate, chapters won't usually be this short! Hope you enjoyed the first chapter, next chapter should be up soon! I won't make this a retelling of SOTL fic, I plan on only really briefly touching on the events of SOTL, this fic will be about Hannibal and Clarice's relationship and how it develops after SOTL.**

**Rating may change depending on the way this story goes, so be wary!**

**Please fav, follow and review and I'll hopefully see you guys next chapter :)**


	2. Chapter 2

**Two chapters in one night aren't you a lucky bunch! For those of you who don't know me I am very impatient and therefore I rarely spell check so apologies in advance! **

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Chapter 2

Despite her previous knowledge, Clarice was still astounded by Hannibal's intelligence. He revealed theories and information about the case without even so much as looking at the case file. Clarice visited him every other day and despite his condition that he only speak to Clarice being met he still had one other condition he wanted to be fulfilled.

"Quid pro quo, Clarice, I tell you things you tell me things, not about the case, however, about yourself," Doctor Lecter proposed on the third day she visited him as they sat at either side of his desk as they read over the case file.

Clarice looked up at him and furrowed her brows. "There's really not much to know about me, Doctor Lecter, I'm about as uninteresting as they come," Clarice laughed nervously.

Doctor Lecter did not shift. "Quid pro quo, Clarice, yes or no," he asked.

Clarice looked down. "Yes," she sighed.

"What's your worst memory of childhood?"

Clarice answered every question he asked with honesty. He could tell when she was lying so she saw it was pointless to even try. She told him of her father, of his death, of the screaming lambs and how she still woke up to them screaming. He listens intently, he made no condescending remark and rarely commented on what she told him, he just listened. During their visits when they stopped talking about the case they would talk about other things; art, music, literature. Clarice could listen to him for hours as he passionately spoke about Dante and all the places he had been. It was a life Clarice had never known and she felt as though she lived it through his descriptions. As rocky as their first encounter had been, Clarice enjoyed their sessions. He made her laugh and he was one of the few people in her life that she could regard as truly interesting.

Hannibal Lecter had to admit to himself how wrong he had been the day Jack Crawford called and told him one of his agents would be coming to see him. He had reluctantly agreed and anticipated the fun he was going to have tormenting the idiotic and ignorant agent Jack Crawford would send his way. When she arrived at his door step he hadn't thought she'd been the agent in question. He automatically assumed she was a young woman who had lost her way. When she revealed she was from the FBI Hannibal saw right through Jack's plan. She was beautiful, her smile was captivating even if it was just out of courtesy he was immediately taken. For a moment, he truly believed Jack had the upper hand. She was polite and courteous and purely an innocent caught up in the game that Jack and Hannibal had been playing for years. She wasn't the ignorant, pompous idiots Jack had sent his way before, true this would make it all the more easier for Hannibal to rip her to shreds but he would feel more conflicted about tearing her up. Perhaps if they had met under other circumstances, Hannibal kept thinking as he ripped into her, maybe things would be...

But then she did the unanticipated, she bit back. He could tell she hadn't planned to but she bit back all the same. Her eyes filled with fire as she noted his lonely life, almost striking a nerve within the Doctor. When she abruptly left he was left both dumbfounded and amused. He liked Agent Starling, he liked her fire, he liked her manners, she intrigued him. If solving a petty FBI case was what it took to get to know her, then so be it. And get to know her he did. Everything about her interested him. From her intelligence when it came to investigating the case, to her honesty and frankness when she spoke about herself and her past, to her humour that he noted that she used often as a defence mechanism and her curiosity when she asked about his life. She was nothing like he had expected and he thoroughly enjoyed their visits.

There was one point of their visits Hannibal did not enjoy. Whenever Clarice left his office she would conveniently run into a young man standing outside the building. Hannibal observed from his window and watched the pair interact. The man was clearly interested in Clarice as Hannibal noted from his body language. Clarice smiled at him but she never appeared fully interested in what he had to say, but each time they met their conversations got longer and longer and Hannibal found himself being unexpectedly irritated by their encounters.

One day, after a two hour long session, Clarice was gathering up her papers whilst Hannibal collected her jacket. He draped the jacket over her as she murmured a thank you.

"Have a safe drive back to Quantico, Agent Starling," Hannibal mused as he always did whenever she left.

She smiled, more to herself than to him. "Actually, Doctor Lecter, I won't be driving back till tomorrow. I'm meeting a friend for drinks and don't what to drive home straight away so I'm staying in a hotel tonight," she informed him. She was very careful of her choice of words when she referred to Connor as a 'friend'.

"Friend?" Hannibal raised his eyebrow in surprise. "It was to my understanding that you didn't have any friends, Clarice, especially ones that reside in the Baltimore area," he teased.

She scoffed at him. "Oh ha ha," she sarcastically laughed. "He's a new friend, his name's Connor, he lives just across from the street from you actually," she looked up at him. "If you'd like to join us I'm sure he wouldn't mind!"

Hannibal smiled at her. He had longed to see Clarice out of a work setting and spend more time with her, but he had hoped to do so without the presence of another man. "As intriguing as that sounds I'm afraid I will have to politely decline. Some other time, perhaps," he said, a grain of hope was evident in his tone.

"Some other time," she repeated, hope slightly evident in her voice, also. "Goodbye, Doctor Lecter, I'll see you on Monday," she said as he held the door open for her. He nodded and closed the door behind her.

–

That night, Doctor Lecter was up reading by the fire when his phone began to buzz. The clock on the wall read almost midnight and he noted the rudeness of the late night phone call. When he reached over and read the name of his phone screen, however, his resentment quickly vanished. He hastily answered.

"Agent Starling?" he answered the phone, his voice was more rushed than he'd wanted it to be.

"Doctor Lecter I know it's late but I don't have a lot of time and I need your help," her tone implied panic and fear, Hannibal was immediately alert. "I'm at Connor's apartment and he gave me a drink with a significantly bitter after taste and I'm in his bathroom and I've found a large stash of rohypnol and-"

Clarice didn't have to say any more. "Where is Connor's apartment?" he hurriedly asked.

Clarice slurred directions and numbers and it was becoming evident that the drug had started to take effect. Hannibal was able to decipher where he lived, he told Clarice to stay in the bathroom and that he would be there momentarily. He drove as fast as he could to the address Clarice had given him and was lucky to find one of the apartment residents was outside smoking and let him in without question. Storming up the stairs of the apartment building Hannibal banged on the door he was certain was Connor's. He tried to open the door himself but found it to be locked. He heard movement behind the door and recognised Connor instantly when he opened the door. To Hannibal's disappointment he was mid way through doing up his belt buckle.

"Can I help you?" Connor asked in a more than irritated tone.

Hannibal was on him in a second, pinning him against the wall by the collar. "Where is she, hmm? Where is Clarice?!" he practically roared in his face. Connor's face was the picture of fear and realisation as he struggled under Hannibal's grasp but to no avail. Before he could answer Hannibal heard a struggled groan from the sofa just across the room, it's back to the two men. Hannibal swiped Connor's legs out from under him and went to the sofa.

Leaning over he found Clarice, half naked with her dress hanging around her mid drift exposing her breast concealed in her bra and the bottom half of her underwear. Her eyes were dazed and confused and looking around hopelessly. Her movements were slow but protesting when she sensed the presence of another person. Hannibal quickly went to her, sitting next to her on the sofa. She managed to slur the word no and tried her hardest to squirm away.

"Clarice, look at me, hey, it's me, it's Doctor Lecter," he cupped her face with his hand reassuringly. It wasn't until he touched her that he realised how much he had wanted to over the past couple of sessions. And he was immediately disappointed that it was under these circumstances. She relaxed at his touch and murmured his name. He hooked her arms through the holes of her dressed and quickly dressed her before scooping her into his arms. He grabbed her clutch and rested it on her stomach as he carried her out of the apartment. He needn't worry about Connor. He would be back to visit him soon enough.

When they got back to his home he laid her down on his sofa and placed a blanket over her, aware that the drug would be out of her system in a matter of hours. When he went leave she unexpectedly reached for his hand, Hannibal was surprised, believing her to be asleep. She gripped his hand surprisingly tight and drowsily met his eyes.

"Thank you," she murmured, her voice sounded breathless and weary. He half-smiled down at her as he saw her fade into sleep. He leaned down to kiss her forehead before embarking to his bedroom for the night.

–

When Clarice awoke she had no idea where she was and close to no recollection of the night. As she sat up and took in her surroundings she recognised the place as Doctor Lecter's living room. _Oh fuck, I better not have drunk dialled him last night _she thought to herself as she was immediately overcome with feelings of regret. She remembered meeting Connor at the bar, drinking, dancing, going back to his place and then it was all a blur. She checked her phone and saw that she had called Doctor Lecter at almost midnight. _Shit_. She jumped slightly when Doctor Lecter entered the room.

"Good morning," he greeted her as he handed her a mug of coffee. She nodded thanks but was too embarrassed to speak. She felt exposed in her otherwise revealing attire and brought the blanket up over her chest. Doctor Lecter sat on the coffee table opposite her and observed her. "How are you feeling?" he asked.

She took a sip of her coffee and couldn't bring herself to look at him. "Embarrassed, ashamed, all topped off with a killer headache," she scrunched up her nose in distaste.

He furrowed his brows in confusion and held out a hand, he lightly put his hand on his hers in a reassuring manner. "You have no reason to be embarrassed or ashamed, my dear. Tell me, why should you feel that way?"

Clarice was taken aback by the sudden physical contact, her eyed widened a bit more than she'd liked, he noticed, and slowly moved his hand away, much to Clarice's disappointment. "I drunk dialled you! Like a stupid teenager that's never drank alcohol in her life and you're the responsible adult that had to take home my stupid drunk ass!" she expressed emotively. Hannibal took the coffee mug from her hands in case she spilled it and placed it down on the table. As he did so she buried her face in her hands.

"That's not what happened, Clarice," Hannibal said slowly. She raised her head from her hands and looked at him. "Connor drugged you, you realised what he had done and called me to come pick you up. That is what happened, Clarice, you have no reason to be ashamed or embarrased."

Tears welled in her eyes as she considered what he was saying. "Did he, did he umm," she struggled to get the words out and could feel herself choking on them.

"No, no, no," Hannibal reassured her. He got up from the coffee table and sat down next to her. Before he could stop himself a hand went to her hair and he began stroking it reassuringly. "I got there just in time."

A tear slipped from her right eye. "I am so sorry, Doctor Lecter, I realise that must've been an uncomfortable situation for you to be in. I should have been more careful-"

He cut her off. "Don't be ridiculous, Clarice, what happened to you was no one's fault but that low life Mr. O'Riley."

Clarice laughed slightly at his apparent irritation with Connor, making Hannibal smile slightly. He wiped away a runaway tear from her cheek and presented her with her clothes. He'd taken the liberty of going to her hotel room and retrieving her belongings and bringing them to his home, noting that if she was staying in Baltimore over night she should have been staying with him. After a close to silent breakfast, Hannibal checked over and over again that she was safe to drive. She hastily excused herself from his home, profusely thanking him as she left.

An hour passed before Hannibal dawned his driving gloves and collected his harpy and headed back to Connor's apartment. Again he was allowed into the building by a smoking resident and made his way to Connor's apartment. Knocking on it with as much force as the night previous, Connor took a longer time answering the door. As he came closer to the door, Hannibal could smell the repugnant smell of iron in the air. As he opened the door Hannibal could see the source of the bleeding; Connor was holding a blood stained tissue under his nose and it excessively bled out. His right eye lid was half closed and Hannibal noted that he appeared to have a lot less teeth than the night previous, his mouth was also red and bleeding. When Connor realised who it was at the door his one good eye grew wide with fear. As Hannibal stepped into the apartment the door bell beeped. Not taking his eye off of Hannibal, Connor put his hand to the button to speak.

"Hello?" Connor sounded wheezy, as though he had been winded.

"Connor O'Riley this is Detective Shaw of the Baltimore Police Department, do you mind if we have a few words?" a voice on the speaker replied. Connor looked defeated as he buzzed the Detective in.

Hannibal stepped closer to Connor and immediately recognised the familiar smell of Evian skin cream and l'air du temps. Clarice had been here, and not just last night, within the past hour. Hannibal chuckled. "You're lucky my friend got here first," he grabbed Connor by the colour again. "I can assure you, you would not have the luxury of incarceration if I had beaten her to the punch, so to speak."

He turned on his heel and walked out of the apartment, smiling to himself as he approached his car. This truly was the beginning to a beautiful friendship.

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**Apologies for the heavy subject matter considering it's only the second chapter.**

**Next chapter will be up soon, don't forget to fav, follow and review :)**


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

The morning it was announced Catherine Martin was reported abducted Clarice blew off all of her classes and sped to Doctor Lecter's home, much to the disapproval of her teachers. She frantically knocked on the door and impatiently waited for him to answer. When he did answer there was obvious surprise written all over his face.

"I know that we didn't have a session today and that this is so unbelievably rude and I know that you hate rude people," she rushed as she stepped over the threshold, she didn't allow him to take her jacket she hung it up herself today. "But have you seen the news today?"

Hannibal had indeed seen the news, and he had anticipated her visit. Despite his ethical guidelines he had cancelled all appointments for the day, unsure as to when she would visit. He couldn't help but admire her constantly ambitious attitude when she strutted into his home.

They got to work straight away, the case file sprawled across Hannibal's desk. Clarice kept running her fingers through her hair in frustration. She'd seen what Buffalo Bill had done to the girl that got pulled out of Elk River, she didn't want to see it happen to Catherine Martin too. Hannibal noted her frustration as she was unresponsive to his witty and humorous remarks, unlike every other session. She was in full Agent Starling mode, her inner lioness taking over. She was trying desperately to protect and save her new lamb. He told her everything she needed to know was in the case file she just had to find it.

She looked up at him, her eyes burning into his. "You know who he is, don't you, Doctor?" her voice was almost a whisper.

"I told you I'd help you, Clarice, giving you the answer straight away would be no fun at all," he winked at her.

Her face showed no amusement. "Have you known this whole time?"

"You're so close to the way you're going to catch him, Clarice," he said casually but she was having none of it.

"Tell me his name, Doctor," Clarice's tone was filled with irritation and impatience.

Instead, he established that what this killer did was covet, how he covets what he sees everyday. He then went on to note how the pattern of the bodies seemed 'desperately random'. He watched her as her mind worked and ticked as she processed the information. He went to prepare lunch and left her to work. He was just serving the food onto two plates when he heard her call out his name. He rushed through and found her in a standing position, looking wide eyed.

"He knew her!" she almost shouted. "The first girl, Fredericka Bimmel, the son of a bitch knew her!"

"Very good, Agent Starling," he smirked at her.

She flashed a warning look his way. "Don't you dare condescend me, Doctor, and don't think for a second I haven't forgotten the fact that you've been withholding vital information from me this whole time!"

He held up his hands in a false surrender. "With all due to respect, Agent Starling, I do believe that you are perfectly capable of solving this case by yourself," he interjected,

"Oh, bullshit, Doctor!" she expressed her voice indicated on she was on the edge of fury.

"Language, Clarice..." Hannibal attempted to calm her but she continued.

"This isn't some learning curve, Doctor Lecter, this is a girl's life hanging in the balance!" she ran her hand through her hair in frustration, taking a deep breath before she calmed herself down. "I thought I could trust you, I thought," she swallowed uncomfortably. "I thought you were my friend." Hannibal furrowed his brows at her, but she was unsure as to why. She shook her head and began to gather up the case file. "Forget it, I'm out of here. You know, I thought this time you were going to be different. I thought that maybe you wouldn't make a fool out of me like you did everyone else but no, you just decided to play the joke out for longer and make me the biggest fool out of them all!" she nearly yelled but she managed to maintain some of her composure as she made her way to the coat hanger and hastily put on her coat.

"Agent Starling, wait..." Hannibal called after her but she left anyway. This time it was his turn to run his hand through his own hair.

–

The next day Hannibal could not get a hold of Clarice. He had called her and left a message but to no avail. Concerning growing, he did the unthinkable and called Jack Crawford. When Jack answered it appeared he was on his way somewhere in a business plane.

"Dr. Lecter what can I do for you?" Jack shouted down the phone, obviously struggling to hear.

"Jack I do apologise if I'm interrupting-" Hannibal began before he cut him off.

"Nonsense, Doctor Lecter, you're the reason there's something to interrupt in the first place!" Jack sounded enthusiastic. "John Hopkins came up with some names, a man named Jame Gumb, sometimes goes by the name John Grant, we're on our way there now to his address in Calumet City."

"Congratulations, Jack," Hannibal mumbled. The name was correct but the address was a business address and would be nothing more than a dead end. "I was actually enquiring about Agent Starling, do you happen to know where she is or how I might contact her?"

"She called about five minutes ago, she's gathering evidence in Belvedere, Ohio," Jack explained.

Hannibal's eyes widened as he hung up the phone and immediately telephoned for a helicopter to air lift him out of Baltimore and take him to Ohio. Jack Crawford may have got the location wrong, but Clarice Starling had got it right.

–

Hannibal arrived shortly after Jack Crawford and his men arrived at the home of Jame Gumb. Several swat vans and police cars surrounded the area and Hannibal was almost overwhelmed with the glare of all the lights. Jack Crawford was first to see him and approached him.

"Doctor Lecter, what are you doing here?" he asked as he got closer to him.

Hannibal ignored his question. "Where's Clarice?" he asked, looking over Jack's shoulder surveying the crowd of people.

Jack put two and two together and realised why Hannibal was here. His eyes turned to the floor and put a hand on Hannibal's shoulder, much to Hannibal's disapproval. He gave him a sympathetic look. "She's in there, Doctor Lecter," Hannibal's eyes burned with anger, Jack quickly reassured him. "We're about to send the boys in to go get her she'll be fine!"

Hannibal pushed Jack's hand off of him and made his way towards the house before Jack put his hand on his chest stopping him. "I'm going in there," Hannibal said in a tone that sounded an awful lot like a warning.

"No, Doctor Lecter, you are not a trained FBI operative, and you're not even armed!" Jack protested as SWAT men started creeping into the house.

"It's Clarice in there, Jack, dammit!" Hannibal practically roared at him. Jack's eyes widened in shock and surprise at Doctor Lecter's reaction. Hannibal suddenly felt like a young boy again, watching his little sister being ripped from him and sent to the slaughter while he could do nothing. He felt helpless as _his _lamb was in danger and he could do nothing. Hannibal roared out again when he heard several gun shots. A silence filled the atmosphere. No one said a word. The only sound was Crawford's radio buzzing.

"Suspect down, victim has been found alive," one of the SWAT team members noted.

Jack looked at Hannibal as he lifted the radio to his mouth. "And what of Agent Starling?" Jack shakily asked. The time that it took for the operative to reply felt like hours.

"Agent is safe," Hannibal let out a breath he had no idea he had been holding.

Catherine Martin was first to exit the home, surrounded by paramedics, carrying a small dog in her arms that she gripped to protectively. The press had arrived and were snapping pictures and shoving cameras and microphones in her face but she just stared blankly ahead as she was guided to the ambulance. Clarice was next to exit, she was shaking slightly, shock overtaking her. Jack Crawford was first to approach her, Hannibal watched in envy as Jack comfortingly put an arm around her and guided her away from the cameras. He walked her over to the car, away from the excitement. Hannibal slowly approached them, giving Clarice time to see him and decide how she would react to seeing him. He expected her to ignore him, yell at him maybe, given their last encounter. But Clarice was never one to conform to expectations.

When he got close enough to her she practically launched herself at him, wrapping her arms around his neck and burying her head into his chest. He stumbled slightly at the sudden contact and was overwhelmed. He'd wanted to hold her like this for a while now but now that the time was here he was taken by surprise. He slowly wrapped his arms around her waist and held her close, inhaling her scent that was now mixed with blood and gunpowder. He put a hand on her head and stroked her hair reassuringly.

"Your lamb is safe, Clarice," he murmured. She answered simply by pulling him closer.

–

Clarice and Hannibal did not speak for some time after the events of Jame Gumb. He understood that her graduation was fast approaching and that she had missed a considerable amount of classes that she would have to catch up in. Even so, it had been weeks since he had last heard or seen Clarice and going back to his everyday life was not an easy adjustment. True, the occasional murder here and there kept his life exciting to some extent, but he had to admit he missed the company of the ambitious, empathetic FBI trainee that graced his office. After some time he received an unofficial invitation to celebrate upcoming graduation of Clarice Starling, however not from Clarice herself which Hannibal had found to be rather disappointing. It was instead Jack Crawford who suggested the idea to him, giving him the necessary details. Jack admitted it'd be good if she had at least one person there to congratulate her and Hannibal was most displeased with the insensitive way Jack had worded his reasoning.

On the day of her graduation, Hannibal dressed in a sharp, dark navy suit and made his way to Quantico. He noted that it was the first time he had made the trip to see her, rather than her making the trip to see him and scolded himself for his rudeness. He found his seat in the crowd and clapped when Clarice's name was called. When she received her new identification she grinned at a face in the crowd that Hannibal assumed belonged to Miss Mapp. He noted that her eyes quickly scanned the rest of the crowd before she walked off stage. _Looking for me, Clarice? _He thought to himself smugly.

Clarice stood with Ardelia, Roden and Pilcher, laughing and chatting while they sipped champagne. She had noticed Pilcher making eyes at her but she thought nothing of it, though she enjoyed his company, Clarice had felt no attraction with Pilcher. Something which, apparently, was not reciprocated on Pilcher's side. All of a sudden the two men who had been facing the two women fell quiet and there's eyes fixed above Clarice's head as she felt a presence behind her.

"Congratulations," a voice behind her whispered in her ear causing an involuntary shiver to run up her spine. She turned around to face the man she'd been hoping to see all day. "Please excuse us," Hannibal smiled to the group, placing his hand on the small of her back and led her away from the conversation. "So I take it's _Special _Agent Starling now?"

She smiled at him. "I didn't know you were going to be here today, Doctor," she said raising an eyebrow at him.

"Jack Crawford invited me, how could I refuse such a man?" Hannibal teased, taking a sip of his champagne.

She laughed slightly. "Yes because we all know he's just your favourite person," this time time he laughed along with her. "But seriously though," she reached her hand out and placed it on his biceps affectionately. "It does really mean a lot to me that you came, thank you," she rubbed his arm three times before retracting her hand.

He smirked at the contact. "I must admit I almost didn't show up," he raised an eyebrow at her. "You've been quite the recluse since the end of the investigation," they began walking out of the building and around the premises.

She looked down at her feet as she spoke. "It was to my understanding that because the investigation was over our," she swallowed. "Professional relationship was over also."

"And what of our _un_professional relationship, Clarice? Did you expect us simply to part ways and never see or speak to one another ever again?" he asked, there was a surprising urgency in his tone as he spoke.

"Well, no," she stuttered. "I just felt that you no longer had any use for me that's all."

Hannibal stopped walking and stepped in front of her and met her eyes. "Clarice, do you ever think about the words you are about to say before you say them or are you just simply unintelligent?" he inquired.

"Well no but-"

"Well then why on earth would you think for one second that I wouldn't want to continue our visits?" Clarice looked at the ground and Hannibal gently grabbed one of her hands. "Clarice I regard you as one of my most important friends and I would honoured if we continued our friendship, if you wish to do the same you need only tell me," he kissed her knuckles then and Clarice simply had to look at him.

She smiled at him. "Alright, Doctor Lecter, friends it is."

"Please," he kissed her hand once more before extending his arm to her. "Call me, Hannibal."


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Fourteen months passed and the partnership between Doctor Hannibal Lecter and Clarice Starling had become almost famous throughout the FBI, many calling her the new Will Graham. However, as Clarice progressed at the FBI she found that her only main use to the FBI was as a turn key to Doctor Lecter. She kept reminding herself that things would be better in a year or two and she would finally be where she wanted to be. Other than her career the one thing Clarice valued in her life was her friendship with Hannibal. He was a good friend, always knowing how to take her mind off of the stresses of her career and everyday life in general.

Hannibal felt the same about his friendship with Clarice. She was a refreshing breath of fresh air in his somewhat lonely life. In the course of their friendship Clarice had had a total of two remotely serious boyfriends, much to Hannibal's dismay. He'd never met either of the men but after Connor he had always been sceptical about the men in Clarice's life. When both relationships came to an end, Clarice would refuse to burden Hannibal with the details, she hated looking weak in front of him.

It was Saturday night and Hannibal had invited Clarice over for dinner. He never dared to feed her his _preferred _choice of meat, he would never humiliate her in such a way. He was mid way through dinner preparations when she knocked three times at the door. He hadn't seen her for over a week and grown restless during their time apart and he was sure she had too. He very much enjoyed having a female friend, their relationship was very easy going with no complications. Except for the fact that Hannibal was undoubtedly attracted to her.

That attraction was evident when he answered the door to her. Clarice Starling out of work attire was always a welcomed sight in his home. Tonight she wore a burgundy midi dress that hugged her figure with long sleeves and an open back topped with a pair of black heels that she would no doubt take off within the hour. Her hair was left to hang loose in wavy curls that came down just below her collar bone. She looked breathtaking. Hannibal composed himself quickly and addressed his guest.

"I don't know how many times I have told you that it is perfectly acceptable for you to simply walk in, I'd hardly say knocking was necessary," he leaned against the door way crossing his arms.

She smirked at him, her eyes shining. "You and I both know that if I did that you would spend the whole night planning how to murder me on account of my rudeness," she raised an eyebrow at him. He couldn't help but laugh and gestured his head for her to come in. "Good evening, H," she laughed as she came into his home, she reached up on her tip toe's and kissed him on the cheek briefly, unfortunately not allowing him time to return the favour. He noted that in all the times she had greeted him in this fashion she had never let him kiss her back, he promised himself that he would investigate that further later on.

He took her coat and hung it up on a hanger. He offered her a glass of wine and she followed him through to the kitchen. Usually, he would insist that his guests wait in the dinning room until dinner was served but Clarice insisted she always accompany him in the kitchen. Not that he complained, he enjoyed her company and would not refuse her. However, she had once tried to cook for Hannibal and the pair of them almost ended up in the emergency room, so the one thing he would refuse of her was her help in the kitchen. So instead she sat on her designated counter, her feet dangling above the floor, sipped her wine and watched the mastermind cook.

"So tell me, Clarice," Hannibal inquired as he chopped and diced vegetables. "How was work this week?"

"Mmm," she took a quick sip of her wine. "Did you not hear? I just took down Baltimore's most infamous serial killer, catching him in the act might I add AND I get to meet the President for my tireless efforts with the investigation and my outstanding commitment to ridding our proud nation of all murderers, rapists and drug lords alike!" she held her glass up in mock triumph. "And that was only Tuesday morning."

Hannibal chuckled. "Still sitting behind your desk, hmm?"

She frowned. "It's been over a year, H, and still nowhere," she huffed. "I just keep waiting for another serial killer to pop up so they can use me to get to you, at least then I'm doing something remotely useful."

"As do I, I do love when we put our minds together, wouldn't you agree?" he winked at her as he scraped the pieces of vegetable into a sauce he was making. She lowered her head and blushed. She hated when he did that. And he loved when she did that.

Dinner was filled with light conversation and general catching up. Clarice had met Hannibal's other friends on rare occasion and often tried her hardest to avoid them. She did not come from the same background as they had and lived a very different life from them in general. They were well educated in works of art and literature and music whereas Clarice didn't even know how to hold a conversation with them. Hannibal knew it made her uncomfortable but would always invite her to dinner parties out of courtesy. On the rare occasion that she did come, she would spend her time analysing them, watching their body language, conducting her own mini psychological profiles. At the end of the night Clarice would report back her findings to Hannibal and would be amused to find that he had been doing the same. Because they made her feel uncomfortable, Hannibal noted that she often made fun of them when they were not present, as a form of defence.

As they cleared away dinner, Clarice was at it again talking about his 'pompous' friends as she liked to label them.

"So how is _Selena_?" Clarice asked, drawing out the woman's name in a sarcastic singsong voice.

"The last I heard Miss Andrews was doing well," he met her eyes as she stared at him, irritated as she picked up their used side plates. "Why the sudden curiosity, _Claric_e?" he mocked the tone she had used.

She rolled her eyes. "Come on, H, you and I have both seen the way she looks at you," it was true. Selena Andrews was a Baltimore socialite in her mid thirties with large, golden blonde hair, big green eyes with her lips always dressed in red, no matter the occasion. She and Hannibal had met at the opera one night and after some encouragement from Mrs. Ellington of the Baltimore Orchestral Board he had invited her to the past couple of dinner parties he had hosted. Clarice had met her twice and didn't like her one bit. Sighting her as pretentious and snobby, Clarice and Hannibal both knew Selena saw Clarice as a romantic rival (though neither of them would admit that to the other). Because of this, Selena was often cold and harsh towards Clarice when Hannibal was not present, unbeknownst to her that this was not the right way to go about winning Hannibal's affection.

"While that is true, Clarice, who is to say that I look at _her_ that way?" Hannibal countered, he paused for a moment and looked in her eyes, raising a questioning eyebrow.

Clarice shrugged and continued picking up items from the table. "Well I wouldn't blame you, she certainly is beautiful, and she's interesting as far as I can tell," she said, trying to justify her reasoning as she walked to the kitchen and placed the cutlery and plates she'd gathered into the sink and started to run water over them.

Hannibal followed her and started drying dishes she'd washed next to her. "Beautiful, yes," he finally replied. "Interesting? Not in the slightest," he shook his head.

Clarice furrowed her brows. "Well if that's the case then why on earth are you friends with me? If she's uninteresting then God knows what I must be!" she exclaimed.

"How is it not possible for her to be uninteresting and you to be interesting, Clarice?" he questioned her, making her think.

"Because," Clarice hesitated. "She knows all about your music, art and literary crap whereas I on the other hand know jack shit!"

Hannibal chuckled, she always had a _creative _way to voice her insecurities. "Did you ever think for a moment, Clarice, that the fact that you are not like her, or the other _pompous assholes _I know, that that is what makes you interesting to me?" He turned to face her as she handed him the last plate. She made a face at him, he noted it was the same face she made whenever he complimented her, he further noted that she must got compliments very often. "So it's _crap_, hmm? My hobbies and interests are just crap to you?"

She dabbed her fingers into the water and flicked them at him, lightly splashing his face. "You know fine well that's not what I meant, H!" she exclaimed. She giggled as he brought a towel up to his face and lightly dabbed it.

"You are quite fortunate that you are wearing such a divine dress this evening, Clarice. I assure you if you were not that would not have ended well for you," he warned her.

She simply laughed and playfully smacked his arm with the back of her hand. Hannibal couldn't help but be amused by the image of the FBI agent sharing dinner and now playfully interacting with the cannibalistic murderer that was the Chesapeake Ripper. He chuckled internally before moving them into the living room to continue the evening. They sat by the fire and chatted to one another. As Clarice grew tired she lay her legs over his lap as he read Italian poetry to her. After two or three poems he heard a change in her breathing pattern and looked over and found her to be sleeping.

Because of the long distance between their homes they came to an agreement that if she were to come for dinner she was welcome to drink and rest in his home. He gently took her into his arms and carried her to the spare study he had converted into a guest room for her, though he would tell her the guest room had always been there. For the purposes of comfort he undressed then dressed her in the overnight clothes she had brought with her. He didn't dare look as he did, no matter how much he wanted to. When she was dressed he laid her down to sleep then retired to his own bed for evening.

–

Sometime during the night Hannibal awoke to distress. The clock on his night stand read two in the morning and he furrowed his brows in confusion. He shouldn't be awake for at least three more hours. As he rose he realised what it was that had awoke him. Light sobbing could be heard, echoing through the halls of his home. Hannibal was dressed in only silk pyjama bottoms so thought it appropriate that he quickly slip a t-shirt on before going to investigate. He considered taking his harpy with him but thought it best not, he didn't want to startle _Clarice_ Starling and awaken _Agent_ Starling.

He quickly crept out of bed and along to the guest room, he knocked softly. The sobbing did not stop and she did not answer him. He was about to go back to his room when she let out a soft cry of pain and discomfort and it was then he entered announced. As he approached her bed he noticed that she was still asleep, that she was having a highly distressing nightmare. He sat down next to her and prodded at her lightly, but she continued to squirm and had now started protesting in her sleep. His prods got more aggressive as he repeated her name. With one slightly violent shake, Clarice shot up, panting and sweating. She looked at Hannibal, wide eyed, full of shock.

"Hannibal..." she couldn't form any more words.

"Clarice," he put a hand to her cheek, running his thumb along her cheekbone. "It was the lambs, wasn't it?"

All she could do was nod. Without thinking, he wrapped his arms around her, comforting her. He stroked her hair until her breathing and heart rate slowed down. Lying on his back, she rested her head on his chest and listened to his heartbeat. When he was certain she was once again at peace he stealthily moved from beneath her. Catching him off guard she held her hand out to him, stopping him.

"Hannibal," she called out softly, he turned to face her. "Please stay with me."

It didn't take any more than that to convince him to lie back down with her in her bed, assuming their previous positions. It didn't take them long to both fall back asleep, one of the best night's sleep either of them had had in a long time.

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**Hope you guys enjoyed the chapter, sorry about the big time jump but I felt it necessary!**

**Don't forget to review, follow and favourite, new chapter will be up soon :)**


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

It was a Wednesday when Clarice called Hannibal with the news. For the past two months a new killer had been in the works, the newspapers had creatively named him the Beast of Baltimore due to his scattering of the women he had killed around Baltimore, his victims had all been abducted, raped, beaten to death, then left openly in alleyways of the city. Clarice had been watching the news intently, watching and waiting. And when it finally came to it, she was surprisingly ecstatic.

"Special Agent Starling," Hannibal had answered on the third ring. "What can I do for you today?"

She could hardly contain her excitement, she fidgeted impatiently on her end of the line. "How familiar are you with the Beast of Baltimore?" she asked, biting her lip.

"I would say he's more of an acquaintance than a friend, we run in the same circles but it would be unlikely to assume we were that-"

"Okay, H, look you can joke all you want later but can you please let me get to my news without you being a sarcastic prick for once?!" she almost yelled down the phone, she wanted to tell him and she wanted to tell him now.

"It would be to my understanding that they have given you the Beast of Baltimore case file and they want us to get to work straight away?" he said smugly, grinning down the phone.

"Dammit Hannibal do you _have _to take the fun out of _everything_?!" she jumped in annoyance like a frustrated teenager. She was angered he'd beaten her to the punch, she hated how he was always one step ahead of her.

"In my defence, Clarice, it was you that claimed I was a _sarcastic prick_," she rolled her eyes at his imitation of her West Virginian drawl that was evident when she lost control of her emotions. "Was it not?"

"Oh piss off, are you in or are you not, Doctor Lecter, yes or no?" Clarice asked, growing more and more impatient.

"Are we back to formalities now, Special Agent Starling? And here is me thinking that you were friends, of sorts," he teased. Judging by the silence on her side of the phone, Hannibal sensed she was unamused. "I suppose I could take a look at that case file, when can I expect to see it?"

He heard her smile through the phone. "Funny you should ask that," she said with a slight nervous laugh. "You might want to cancel your appointments for the day, Doctor Lecter, because this one's pretty urgent. I'm leaving in around twenty minutes," she explained.

He tsk'd her down the phone. "Tedious, Clarice, _very_ tedious," he shunned her. Clarice worried for a moment, scared she had angered him for a moment. "You're quite fortunate I have no appointments today or you may have had to endure me in a less than hospitable mood."

"As oppose to the cheerful, happy-go-lucky mood that you're always in?" Clarice countered sarcastically.

He had to laugh at that. Hannibal's laugh was something heard very rarely, occasionally he would give the obligatory soft chuckle when he felt it appropriate but a genuine laugh was something that had only really come about often in the past fourteen months he had been friends with Clarice Starling. He noted this as they hung up and he awaited her arrival in just over an hour. Clarice had brought a lightness into his life he could not quite explain. His dreams of Mischa and her horrific death courtesy of the deserters did not occur as regularly as he had become accustomed to. He was disappointed to find out that the same had not been happening to her, but he was not surprised. Hannibal found himself lost in his memory palace as he thought back to the night he had fallen asleep with Clarice in his arms. In the absence of her skin cream and her perfume, Clarice Starling had smelled of almonds and crisp, autumn leaves. Her slow, relaxed breathing echoed in his ears and he had found himself mimicking her breaths in an attempt to calm himself.

He had never held a woman the way he had held Clarice. Yes, there had been women in his life and yes he had been intimate with them, but after all was said and done he never felt compelled to stay with them, never mind hold them. While he found the nature of a 'one night stand' to be tedious he found that pretending to have legitimate feelings for another individual even more tedious. This was the first time, given they had not shared intimate behaviour of the sexual kind, he ever felt the burning need to hold another human being in his arms and never let go.

The room marked 'Clarice' was where Hannibal had been spending most of his time in his memory palace. While the room was not as full with memories as he would have liked it to be, he took great pleasure in comparing the first time they had met and the last time they had met. Even he was surprised of the overall outcome of their relationship, he would never have predicted that even for a moment they would be where they are right now. Hannibal did have an avid social life but to say he had a true friend; someone with whom he felt he could share the best parts and the worst parts of himself with, now that was something different indeed.

As he strolled around the Clarice room of his palace a memory surfaced that he had not visited for a long time. It was the night he had rescued her from the vile Connor O'Riley, the night he had found her lying half naked and drugged on his repulsive sofa. Out of respect for Clarice, he had tried his hardest to suppress the memory from his palace, but alas, he himself had to admit that he was indeed only human. As he recalled that night he also recalled his feelings of that moment. Amidst his anger and contempt for Mr. O'Riley, Hannibal had been met with, upon discovering Clarice's half naked form, a burning desire to touch her. Not in that moment and under those circumstances did he want to touch her there and then, but he had wanted her. True, it was not the first moment he had felt sexually drawn to her, the first moment being the very first moment he saw her, but it was indeed the first moment he had felt that undying need brewing in the pit of his stomach come close to rushing to the surface.

He thought a lot about the night they shared her bed then. He could've acted on his desire then but it wouldn't have been right. She was emotionally vulnerable, and besides, how did he know if she felt the same way about him? He was much older than she was, she was bright and attractive, it was no question that she had men fawning over her wherever she went. Why would she settle for him? There was also the issue of Clarice's father. Hannibal knew that since his death, Clarice had longed for a father figure. Did she see Hannibal as a suitable applicant to fill that void in her life? Perhaps Clarice did want him to fill the void in her life, but who was to say it was as her father. Hannibal let his thoughts run away with him and was brought back down to Earth when his letterbox pinged shut.

He made his way to the door and found his mail, a beige envelope with his name and address in gold cursive gathered his attention. Placing the rest of his mail aside, he carefully opened the envelope to reveal a white card that he held delicately between his fingers. It was an invitation for Hannibal Lecter and guest to attend the annual Symphony Board Spring fundraiser, to which he had attended the past two years in a row. It was dated two weeks from that day, Hannibal found it to be tediously short notice, given he would have to find someone to accompany him. His mind wandered to his possible options when there was a knock at the door.

Making his way to the door, he opened the door to the welcoming smell of L'air Du Temps, it's source was the excited young face of Clarice Starling, her fingers gripping tightly to what he could only assume was the Beast of Baltimore case file. She grinned at him, as she proudly stepped over the threshold.

"Good morning," she almost sang cheerfully, she stood up on tiptoes, as always she was quick with her kiss on his cheek, never once lingering to allow him to do the same.

Clarice spent hardly any time on pleasantries and delved right into the case at hand. Hannibal tried his hardest to contain his amusement at the transparency of the killer at hand, and beamed with pride as Clarice started to piece it all together, following her instincts instead of the recommendations made by Jack Crawford and her superiors. He knew Clarice had the capability of solving this case herself, it was just a pity that they only used her to get to Hannibal, fully aware of their relationship.

Hours passed and before they knew it it was the early hours of the evening.

Checking her wrist watch, Clarice gasped. "Oh my god, is that the time?! Hannibal I'm so sorry I had no intention of staying this late!" she exclaimed.

Hannibal chuckled and placed a reassuring hand on her back. "Clarice, do not fret, I was just about to ask you if you would like to stay for dinner," he smiled at her and watched her face relax slightly.

"Oh no, Hannibal I couldn't, I've overstayed my welcome way too much!" she shook her head and held up her hand, insisting.

Instead of letting her insist, he instead took her hand in his, shocking her slightly, he watched with great pleasure as the spark of his touch hit her eyes. "Clarice, I insist you stay for dinner, to refuse me would wound me terribly," he pleaded jokingly with his eyes.

Clarice stared into those intense eyes and considered the man in front of her. No matter how close the pair were as friends, Clarice could not deny how captivating his gaze was, she could easily drown in that sea of red. She eventually shook herself, thinking he hadn't noticed her momentary stall. She laughed at him, a sound that brought Hannibal immense joy. "Alright, alright, jeez do you always have to be so dramatic?!" she playfully slapped him on his arm resulting in a chuckle from Hannibal.

After dinner, Hannibal invited Clarice to retreat to the living room to which she kindly refused.

"I really shouldn't, I'm up early and Ardelia, she worries," Clarice explained.

"Of course, you must give my best to Agent Mapp," Hannibal noted as he retrieved her coat. As he was about to send her on her way he had a thought. "Clarice, there is something I would like to ask of you. If you wish to decline I will not be offended and I will completely understand," Clarice nodded as he once again took her hand in his. "I have been invited to the symphony board's Spring fundraiser and I would be honoured if you would accompany me."

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**Sorry for the shortness of this chapter but thought I'd split this chapter into two and next chapter I'll focus on the events of the fundraiser! Hope you guys enjoyed the chapter, let me know what you think in the reviews :)**


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